The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree by Gloria Houston, il. by Barbara Cooney
Ruthie and her father pick out the perfect balsam Christmas tree for their church early in the spring. But the war takes her father across the ocean and Ruthie and her mother are left to do everything on their own. Will they be able to get the tree from the rocky craig if Father doesn’t get home in time? Will Ruthie get a new angel dress in time for the Christmas program? Go back in time and re-live the wonder of Christmas through Ruthie’s eyes.
The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree: An Appalachian Story
Students turned in the following reactions to this story:
Dorothy in Mrs. Owens 4th grade class wrote: My favorite part is when Santa gave the little girl the angel.
Tylandra in Mrs. Owens 4th grade class wrote: I like the part when St. Nicholas gave Ruthie the angel from the top of the Christmas tree and she saw that it looked just like her.
Thank you Dorothy and Tylandra for your contributions.
By: Janice Green on December 2, 2008
at 6:39 pm
I like the part when St.Nicholas gave everyone a gift. It is great because even when you be bad you still get something even though you shouldn’t.
by Adasha in Ms. Schillings 6th Grade Class
By: adasha pope on December 2, 2008
at 9:55 pm
Here are a few more student responses from Mrs. Stalvey’s 5th grade class today:
Jeremiah said: I liked the story because it gets emotional. First it was happy when the father was home. Next it got sad because her father went away to fight in the Army. At the end he finally came home. Also the girl wanted her father to come back before Christmas.
Gage said: I think this story is really cool because the girl and her father find the perfect Christmas tree and the girl ties her red ribbon on top of the tree. When her father goes to war she and her mother go to get the perfect tree and take it to the church. And the mother uses her wedding dress and the package the father sent her to make a perfect dress for the daughter.
Melanie said: I just thought this story was so lovely. I liked the part that the Mama gave up her wedding dress to make her daughter an angel. Then made an angel on top of the beautiful tree that looked just like the little girl.
Samantha said: This was a beautiful book. I liked it because it tells about how wonderful her Christmas was. I didn’t like the part where her dad had to go away. It was sad. I liked the end of it the most where she got her doll and her daddy just like she asked.
Chasity said: What I think about the story is that it is lonely. It’s like you want to go to heaven. It also makes me feel happy about myself. The story is like one of the best stories that I ever read.
By: Janice Green on December 5, 2008
at 8:48 pm